On the fifteenth floor of the Silent Spiral, amidst the sweep of lightning, rain, wind, and fire, a small sanctuary was pressed against the wall like a precarious shelter.
Igola stood in front of Gwen, shrinking the sanctuary as much as he could. The larger the sanctuary, the greater its surface area against attacks, and naturally, the more sorcery power it drained. Right now, Igola had to conserve every shred of power. Ideally, he would have shrunk the sanctuary flush against his skin, but he had to protect Gwen, so it had to leave enough room for two people.
Yet the situation continued to deteriorate. His sorcery power had dropped to a third, and after the Psychological Shadow Blast, the Black Feather sorcerers had retreated into complete self-isolation. Igola hadn't managed to lure a single one out to be butchered.
Even as Black Crow scribbled and drew aimlessly over their sanctuary barrier, not one Black Feather sorcerer spared him a glance, treating him as nothing more than a noisy crow.
"Surrender, Lord Igola," Mercury Trojan said, resuming her air of assured victory. "You have run out of options. My Black Feather Guard will no longer be swayed or deceived by your tricks."
"I never deceive anyone," Igola replied. "I only tell people a story they want to believe."
Igola couldn't help but admire Mercury Trojan. He had deliberately pointed out that the Black Feather sorcerers envied and feared Black Crow, thinking to drive a thorn into their hearts. Yet Mercury Trojan had turned right around, pulled the thorn out, and sealed the wound with spit. Far from becoming a source of inferiority, the scar left by the healed wound had become a symbol of pride for the Black Feather sorcerers.
Though only three Sanctuary sorcerers remained, the combat strength of the Black Feather Guard had increased rather than declined.
When it came to manipulating human hearts, Mercury Trojan could easily rank second among everyone Igola knew.
Now, however, Mercury Trojan was determined to wear down Igola's sorcery power bit by bit. Faced with this orthodox strategy of overwhelming numbers, Igola, who excelled in crooked tricks and underhanded schemes, was truly at his wit's end.
Once his sorcery power was exhausted, Igola would be no different from a Lalafell waiting for slaughter!
Just then, the ground beneath them suddenly caved in. Igola and Gwen immediately unfolded their wings and took to the air, but the prepared Black Feather sorcerers had already unleashed a shower of lightning-water arrows to hunt them down. As far as Igola's eyes could see, every drop of rain cascaded toward him, destined to strike his vision.
Whoosh! They flew through the torrential downpour. The lightning-water arrows curved in pursuit, pattering violently against the sanctuary. Just as Igola made a sharp turn before the wall, intending to exhaust the arrows against the stone, he suddenly caught sight of an anomaly.
Crack!
He violently yanked Gwen into his embrace. By then, Gwen's arm had already been pierced by a lightning-water arrow; the wound was charred black, deep enough to expose bone.
Igola glanced at her without saying a word. He had thought it was just an accident at first, but in the ensuing barrage of firestorms, he noticed Gwen almost stepped outside the sanctuary. He fiercely gripped her wrist, making her grunt in pain.
"Is it my imagination," Igola murmured, "or are you actively looking for a way to die?"
Gwen fell silent.
"Are all you Senluo people like this? Every single one of you in a hurry to die, thinking death will leave something behind. The crow was like this, and you're like this too. Looking at it this way, Mercury Trojan and Chikala are actually slightly better; at least they know to cherish life... If your mouth won't speak, why not sew it shut?"
Gwen still said nothing.
Having spent days together, Igola had long since figured out the temperament of this star-sorcery assistant. No answer meant she hadn't changed her mind. Igola knew what she was thinking without even using his brain—wasn't she just convinced that everyone would die soon anyway, but without her dragging him down, Igola's sanctuary could hold out a little longer, and he could escape faster later on...
This was why Igola truly despised Senluo people. Their love was a mess, their hatred was a mess—it was truly a chaotic realm. Everyone insisted on doing things their own way, everyone driven mad for something...
Madness...
The swindler suddenly had a wondrous idea.
"Since you want to die so badly..." Igola said coldly, "fine. I'll give you a chance."
Gwen raised her head to look at him, then gave a slow nod.
When the Black Feather sorcerers switched back to their lightning-water arrow volley, Igola and Gwen suddenly darted toward the mist gates leading to the upper and lower floors respectively.
Mercury Trojan froze for a fraction of a second, then immediately ordered, "Lock on Igola!"
The lightning-water arrows surged toward Igola. Igola unleashed a massive Mind Shriek, catching all the Black Feather sorcerers in its blast and instantly shattering the vast majority of the arrows. Yet among the remainder, several shafts still pierced straight through Igola!
However—
"Mercury Trojan, do you truly want to fight me to the death?"
Mercury Trojan blinked and found Igola standing safe and sound near the lower gate. The one pierced through by the lightning-water arrows was none other than Gwen!
Her pupils constricted sharply. Could this be—
"The Transposition sorcery spirit," Igola said coldly. "This is my absolute trump card... If you hadn't forced my hand, I wouldn't have been willing to expose this power."
Gwen leaned against the earthen barrier before the upper mist gate, trembling from head to toe with agony.
"I'll ask you once more, Mercury Trojan: are you going to let me leave?"
Mercury Trojan's heart stirred. "If you're willing to hand over the Transposition sorcery spirit, I will spare you."
The Transposition sorcery spirit!
Anyone could see the immense potential of such a spirit at a glance!
Think about it: in a standoff between two sides, what would happen if you suddenly swapped the opponent's core figure into your own ranks? In an ambush, what would happen if you swapped the target straight into a trap? In a pursuit...
The tactical value of this sorcery spirit was beyond measure. Although Mercury Trojan had never heard of it, anything was possible in the Void Realm—not to mention that Igola hailed from another realm. This might very well be the product of foreign sorcery.
Acquiring this sorcery spirit would be no different from gaining another Sanctuary combatant!
Yet Igola sneered. "Don't insult me with promises flimsier than toilet paper."
"Then hand over all your other sorcery spirits," Mercury Trojan countered immediately. "If there are ones I like, I might just be pleased enough to let you two go."
"Not all of them. At most, a portion."
"Then start by telling me what spirits you have..."
To the side, Black Crow watched their negotiation in silence. Fortunately, concealed behind his crow mask, no one could see his astonishment.
In his eyes, the one sitting wounded on the ground was Igola, and the one standing tall was Gwen!
Igola and Gwen hadn't swapped places at all!
The swindler had likely cast an illusion miracle over himself and Gwen, which was why in everyone else's eyes, he and Gwen had swapped positions in an instant. Yet Black Crow was completely immune to the direct influence of sorcery spirits; he was practically impervious to mental-influence miracles like this!
Black Crow was still wondering why Igola had done this when he noticed Igola secretly digging a hole through the earthen barrier. Behind that wall was the mist gate leading to the upper floor—Igola wanted to run!
Indeed, there was no longer any hope of defeating Mercury Trojan, so why shouldn't they leave? From the very start, Black Crow had hoped only he would die here. Igola and Gwen had merely been dragged down by him, so it was only natural for them to leave now.
Yet...
Black Crow looked at Gwen as she gradually drew closer to Mercury Trojan, his lips pressed into a tight line.
He had never imagined that to buy time to dig his way out, Igola would turn Gwen into a decoy to draw Mercury Trojan's attention.
Still, when he thought about it carefully, Black Crow couldn't blame Igola either. Gwen was their prisoner of war, and had once served as Mercury Trojan's container of sins. She should have died long ago in the Dead City; Igola and the others were the ones who had spared her life.
Now that Igola was using her as a decoy to buy himself a chance at survival, it was only right for Gwen to do this.
And yet Black Crow's heart was a tangled knot. He wanted to beat Tanomu to death, and he wanted to beat Igola to death—why was Gwen willing to act as your decoy? Don't you understand, Igola?!
Normally, she said nothing, quietly staying at your side, handling anything you didn't feel like doing, preparing everything you were too lazy to prepare. She was like an unremarkable blade of grass, wanting nothing more than to accompany you; she didn't even need you to look at her, needing only the stray warmth of sunlight spilling past you to blossom brightly.
Yet he could do nothing, say nothing. He could only watch events unfold in silence, because this was what Igola wanted, and what Gwen was willing to give.
"...Three three-winged sorcery spirits. That is my absolute limit."
"Fine, deal," Mercury Trojan said cheerfully. "Hand them over."
Gwen looked at the Black Feather sorcerers before her, her body trembling with terror. She suddenly pressed down on her wounded arm, took a deep breath, and unfolded her void wings to take flight.
She should have died long ago—when the Four Pillar Cult invaded her cult, and in the Dead City. Her entire life had been lived in a daze, knowing only to obey the cult's orders, obey Mercury Trojan's orders, never knowing what she lived for, never knowing what she died for, existing like cattle.
Yet at least this time, it was her choice to live this way, and her choice to die this way.
For cattle, she had lived far too long; but for a star, having shone and flashed was just enough.
She unfurled her void wings and soared, shouting according to Igola's final command: "Black Crow, get ready—"
"Attack!"
At Mercury Trojan's command, the Black Feather sorcerers unleashed their shower of lightning-water arrows once more! But their target wasn't 'Igola' hovering in midair—it was 'Gwen' digging through the wall in the distance!
After all, if even Black Crow had noticed 'Gwen' digging a hole, how could Mercury Trojan have missed it? But her deduction was entirely different from Black Crow's—she believed that once 'Gwen' finished digging through, 'Igola' would swap positions with 'Gwen' and seize the chance to escape to the upper floor!
'Igola' had negotiated with her solely to buy time for 'Gwen' to dig!
Therefore, apart from a small volley directed at 'Igola', the overwhelming majority of the arrows surged toward 'Gwen'! That way, even after 'Igola' swapped positions with 'Gwen', he would still be torn apart by the devastating barrage!
In that single instant,
Gwen believed she was the decoy,
Black Crow believed Gwen was the decoy,
and Mercury Trojan also believed 'Gwen' was the decoy!
Whiz! Whiz! Whiz!—
Although the Mind Shriek continued to reverberate through the hall, quite a few lightning-water arrows still pierced through the figure beside the earthen wall!
"Who exactly... are you attacking?"
As Igola's mocking voice echoed across the chamber, the Black Feather sorcerers discovered to their horror that the pitiful figure pinned against the wall by the barrage, drenched in blood and coughing up a mouthful of dark gore, was none other than...
Mercury Trojan!
The swindler had actually swapped Gwen with Her Seat?!
Had they... murdered Her Seat?!
In an instant, the Black Feather sorcerers dropped their weapons and collapsed to their knees. The light in the hall seemed to wither as an all-consuming darkness swept over their world.
In the heart of every single Black Feather sorcerer, a Blood Crow appeared, pecking viciously at their conscience.
Gwen stared blankly at the scene. She hadn't suffered a scratch, because a sanctuary was shielding her.
It was Igola's sanctuary.
He had used his sanctuary to protect Gwen, while taking the brunt of the lightning-water arrows upon himself. That was an inevitable price. Only in this manner would the Black Feather sorcerers thoroughly believe the ending to his story.
From the moment he and Gwen swapped appearances, the story had already begun.
The Transposition sorcery spirit was the core of the tale. He had to make the Black Feather sorcerers believe he truly possessed a sorcery spirit capable of swapping two people's positions. Thus, he had to engineer a moment where he seemingly traded places with Gwen—such as swapping with her right before taking a hit.
Then, the next time he took injury, he needed only disguise himself as Mercury Trojan, and all the Black Feather sorcerers would believe Igola had swapped places with Mercury Trojan, and that they had struck down their own master.
Anywhere else, such a trick would have been utterly meaningless. But uniquely within the Slay All Crows trial, Igola's scheme turned into a fatal dagger!
The crushing guilt of murdering Mercury Trojan would obliterate the Black Feather sorcerers' mental defenses, leaving them completely stripped of the will to fight! The three Sanctuary sorcerers couldn't even maintain their sanctuaries!
And so—
Igola, practically coughing blood with every breath, roared, "Tamashi!"
Slash!
Before his shout had even faded, Black Crow's dance of slaughter had already bloomed. Countless heads flew, countless corpses dropped, and countless sprays of blood erupted. Wherever the Death-Herald Black Crow passed, living souls were harvested like straw!
Three Sanctuary sorcerers.
Thirteen Two-Wing sorcerers.
Twenty One-Wing sorcerers.
Three seconds.
In just three seconds, Black Crow utterly obliterated Mercury Trojan's final capital. Throughout the entire massacre, Mercury Trojan had stared blankly at everything, as if she hadn't yet comprehended it, or perhaps knew she was powerless to stop it.
She looked up, watching the shadow of the Death-Herald Black Crow engulf her frame.
Chapter 715